Delicious easy-to-make pumpkin flan recipe, a smooth custard dessert with a simple caramel sauce. Made with less than 10 ingredients. Perfect for your holiday gatherings!
Are you looking for new desserts to try this year? Make this easy pumpkin caramel flan for any of your upcoming holidays.
You will find variations of flan in the Latin countries, from added rum to cream cheese and even coffee.
In Panama, you can find vanilla flan in most cake shops or restaurants. A particular type called “flan escondido” means hidden flan (flan and cake sandwich), what a delicious treat.
Today I will guide you on how to make a pumpkin flan recipe that my mom has made for years. It’s one of her famous recipes that makes anyone who doesn’t like pumpkin love it.
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📋 Ingredients for the flan recipe
You will need cooked pumpkin, evaporated milk, condensed milk, vanilla extract, eggs, salt, and sugar to make this recipe.
In the recipe card below, you will find all the exact measurements.
Utensils needed a blender or a food processor, a small saucepan, a cake pan or ramekins (for making individual portions), a spatula, and a large baking pan that will fit your flan pan or ramekins. A strainer is optional.
Now that we have all the ingredients and utensils let’s get cooking!
📝 Step by Step Instructions
The instructions will be divided into two principal sections the caramel and the flan custard.
The first step will be to preheat your oven to 350º. Now you can proceed with your preparation.
Caramel Sauce Preparation
The caramel is a sensitive topic. The first time I tried making it, it turned out a disaster (I burned it 😅).
After a couple more tries, it worked. I learned two ways of making caramel sauce: the wet method and the dry method.
The first method tried was dry, and it was a fail for me. The sugar melted too fast and well ended up burnt. Plus, It was tricky to clean.
The wet method was the winner.
In a small saucepan, add the sugar and water and mix. Turn up the heat to low and let it simmer. You will see that the color starts to change to an amber-like color for a couple of minutes.
The process should take around 5-8 minutes. You should see bubbles. Move the saucepan gently to make sure that the sugar is dissolve (image 1).
This process is quick, so you need to keep an eye on it. Caramel burns in seconds. Once it reaches the desired color, turn off the heat.
Next, add the caramel to your flan pan or ramekins and set it aside to cool (image 2). Once it cools, the caramel should set. In case it is still runny, no worries will still work, but it will have a light caramel flavor.
Pumpkin crème caramel custard
Add to the blender or food processor all the main ingredients: the cooked pumpkin, condensed milk, evaporated milk, salt, sugar, eggs, and vanilla extract. Blend until combined (image 3).
You can remove any bubbles from the mixture if you have too much. Doing this will result in a silky smooth texture.
Put the pan or ramekins in the baking pan. Pour the flan mixture into your pan or ramekins (image 4). You can use a strainer to remove any lumps and bubbles from the mixture.
Since I used a highspeed blender, I skipped this step and it worked well.
You can leave the mixture a couple of minutes to rest, and the bubbles will subside. You can also use a spoon and remove the top bubbles if there are any.
Before you put the flan into the oven, add water to the baking pan. Fill about half up. This technique is called ban-marie. This method will ensure that the temperature is regulated and cooks the custard without any bubbles or curdles.
Put the baking pan into a preheated oven to 350º and bake for 50-60 minutes.
To verify that the flan is done, it should jiggle in the middle but the sides must be set. You can insert a knife in and if comes out clean it is done.
Once it is done, remove it from the oven and from the ban-marie. Let it cool before refrigerating (image 5).
Refrigerate overnight or 24 hours. So the flan firms up.
To remove the flan from the pan, you will need a pairing knife or even a butter knife. Warm some water and insert the knife in it. Pass it around the pan so it loses the flan from the pan (image 6).
Take a bigger plate with a rim, top the pan, and flip it. Jiggle the pan a few times, and the flan will slide right out, leaving all that sweet caramel drop over. I’m drooling already.
Now your pumpkin flan is ready to be enjoyed! You can serve it warm, at room temperature, or cold.
This flan recipe has been part of our holiday (Christmas & New Year’s) tradition dessert + fruit cake that never skips the table.
Last year my sister-in-law almost eats all of it. And my boyfriend does not like pumpkin, but when there is pumpkin flan he asks for repeats. This dessert is a winner in my family book!
I hope you give it a try and enjoy it just as much as my family ☺️
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Frequently Asked Questions and Tips
What pan should you use to make flan?
In some countries, a flanera is used. If you don’t have one, don’t sweat. You can use a 9-inch round cake pan. If you prefer, make individual portions, use ramekins.
You can even use some meal prep containers (like the one in the photo), be sure they are oven safe, and you should be good to go. I like the meal prep containers’ idea since they have airtight covers and are easy to store.
I wouldn’t recommend a springform pan since the mixture can filter out.
How to remove the flan from the pan?
The flan needs to be cooled before you can flip it. To remove the flan, you will need a pairing knife or even a butter knife. Warm some water and insert the knife in it. Pass it around the pan, so it loses the flan from the pan.
Take a bigger plate with a rim, and top the pan and flip it. Jiggle the pan a few times, and the flan will slide right out, leaving all that sweet caramel drop over.
How do you know when flan is done?
To verify that the flan is done, it should jiggle in the middle, but the sides must be set. You can insert a knife in, and it comes out clean it is done. It also will have a light golden color on the edges.
Does flan need a water bath?
The water bath or bain-marie is necessary because it helps regulate the temperature in the oven. The water makes gentle heat that avoid the eggs custard to curdle.
Can I make flan on the stove?
In case you don’t want to turn on your oven you can also cook it on the stove.
You will need a big pot and a trivet. Fill the pan(s) and add the trivet to the pot and put over it the pan. Fill halfway the pan with water and cook covered on low heat for 50 to 60 minutes. You must monitor that there is enough water on the pot.
Do you flip flan hot or cold?
In my experience, cold is better since it avoids the flan breaking apart if it is hot. Also, it helps prevent the caramel from going everywhere.
Should flan be covered when baking?
It can be cooked uncovered. It will depend on how shallow your baking pan is. Covering it will prevent the water from the ban-marie to enter the flan while baking.
If you have a taller baking pan, you should be safe without covering it.
How long does flan take to set in the fridge?
Depending on if you’re making individual portions or one big one, the time can vary. The individual ones can take around 2 hours to set and the big ones at least 8 hours.
I prefer to keep it overnight, so it is set and ready to be eaten the next day. People will give it 24 hours to set.
Do you eat flan hot or cold?
Most of the time, you can eat it at room temperature, cold or warm. In that order is how I usually enjoy it. This is a personal preference. You can taste it in those forms and choose your winner!
What do you eat with flan? Serving suggestions
In my opinion, it tastes fantastic by itself. Adding something else can overpower. But you could always add vanilla ice cream. 😉
How to store flan?
Store covered in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Covered, so the refrigerator odors do not alter the flan taste.
Can you prepare it in advance?
Yes, you can! This dessert is better to make at least the day before, so it has enough time to set.
Substitutions
- Pumpkin: you can also use the canned ones or even use butternut squash in replacement.
- Sugar: You can use brown or white sugar; either will work.
- You can also add some spices to change the flavor profile like adding cinnamon or even pumpkin pie spice to jazz it up for Thanksgiving.
If you’ve tried the Pumpkin Flan recipe or any other recipe on Nashi Food, don’t forget to rate ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ the recipe and leave me a comment below! We love to hear about your experience making it.
Pumpkin Flan
Ingredients
Caramel Sauce
- ½ cup sugar
- ⅓ cup water
Pumpkin Flan Custard
- 1 pound cooked pumpkin
- 1 can evaporated milk
- 1 can condensed milk
- 4 large eggs, at room temperature
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 tablespoon sugar
Utensils
- a small saucepan
- blender or a food processor
- a cake pan or ramekins (for making individual portions),
- a spatula
- a large baking pan that will fit your flan pan or ramekins
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350º.
Caramel Sauce
- In a small saucepan, add the sugar and water and mix. Turn up the heat to low and let it simmer. You will see that the color starts to change to an amber-like color between 5-8 minutes. Once it reaches your desired color, turn off the heat.
- Next, add the caramel to your flan pan or ramekins and set aside to cool. Once it cools, the caramel should set. In case it is still runny, no worries will still work, but it will have a light caramel flavor.
Pumpkin flan custard
- Add to the blender or food processor all the ingredients: the cooked pumpkin, condensed milk, evaporated milk, salt, sugar, eggs, and vanilla extract). Blend until combined.
- Put the pan or ramekins in the baking pan. Pour the flan mixture into your pan or ramekins.
- Add water to the baking pan, fill about half up. This method is the ban-marie.
- Put the baking pan into a preheated oven to 350º and bake for 50-60 minutes.
- Verify that the flan is done by inserting a knife in and if it comes out clean, it is done. Then remove from the oven and from the ban-marie. Let it cool before refrigerating. Refrigerate overnight or 24 hours. So the flan sets.
- To remove the flan from the pan, you will need a pairing knife or even butter knife. Warm some water and insert the knife in it. Pass it around the pan so it loses the flan from the pan.
- Take a bigger plate with rim, and top the pan and flip it. Jiggle the pan a few times and the flan will slide right out. The caramel drop over the flan.
- Now your pumpkin flan is ready to be enjoyed! You can serve it warm, at room temperature, or cold.
Notes
In case you don’t want to turn on your oven, you can also cook it on the stove.
You will need a big pot and a trivet. Fill the pan(s) and add the trivet to the pot, and put over it the pan. Fill the pot halfway with water and cook covered on low heat for 50 to 60 minutes. You must monitor that there is enough water on the pot. Substitutions
- Pumpkin: you can also use the canned ones or even use butternut squash in replacement.
- Sugar: You can use brown or white sugar; either will work.
- You can also add some spices to change the flavor profile like adding cinnamon or even pumpkin pie spice to jazz it up for Thanksgiving.
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